ABSTRACT
In the film world, the use of props is paramount in the endless problem of cheating one's face round to camera, when either he/she or the director demands it. Personal props such as notebooks, pens, pencils, spectacles, watches, handkerchiefs, and handbags are extremely useful and are normal accessories, but always practice business with even the simplest of props and always check that they are there. Experienced actors will get their props, or close copies of them, into the rehearsal room as soon as possible, so that the intricate planning needed to use them can start at once. Props also have to be very carefully used, so that the same prop is held in the same hand on the same syllable of a line, making sure that continuity will be maintained. Props on-screen need also to be cheated, that is, brought up into shot, much more than in real life or onstage.
